scapegoat
“Yeah, that cancer is nasty.” said the doctor. He was nodding as he spoke. I had just given a list of uncomfortable symptoms I was experiencing, and was dissatisfied by his summary dismissal.
“The cancer is nasty, yes. But I’d like you to see what specifically is causing the pains in my chest and stomach. If you want to blame the Myeloma that’s fine, but please explain the mechanism.”
“Mechanism?” he asked.
“Yes, what is the cancer doing that causes this particular pain. What is my body reacting to?”
“It’s reacting to your cancer.”
“How? What is happening to what organ and why?”
“Well, there’s no way to know that without a workup.” said the doctor. He sounded a little impatient.
“Well then, let’s do that workup because I want to know what this is. It’s scaring the hell out of me.”
“We can’t do that this time. But if you make another appointment, we can start the process and over a few appointments get a handle on what you want to know.”
I was getting more annoyed. “That is going to take weeks –maybe months, given how quickly anyone can get an appointment.”
“It might, yes. Are you sure that you want to do that?”
I told him yes, I was sure I wanted to do that. I also charged him with making the needed referrals to any other departments to get those appointments going as well. It’s been six weeks now and I have yet to hear back. As a matter of fact, even my oncologists don’t see much need in seeing me anymore. Since we ran out of therapies to try and the ones we did try almost killed me, the entire VA seems to have thrown its hands in the air and have shrugged off to other patients.
I’m expecting my demise to come as a result of the things the VA chronically sweeps under the rug while smiling angelically with a hand on the bible. With some doctors it is, but for the most part it is the VA system which makes the health care they offer so useless to those of us who need it most. The VA was designed and is operated as a good health maintenance system rather than true health care. Their way is a production line with a grand total of twenty minutes spent on any single patient. That includes their record keeping, so patients actually get about 10 minutes of physician time.
When I first went to the VA for health help, I was assigned to Dr. Jenifer Mayfield. She took the time to find what it was that so many civilian doctors failed to find. She figured out and proved the Multiple Myeloma eating away at me. Dr. Mayfield’s work has kept me alive in spite of the cascade of errors and mistakes I suffered after her. Their reward for excellence in patient care? She was fired. She took too much time being careful and thorough with her patients. That is literally why they fired her. Veterans loss is Group Health’s gain, she’s happily and competently treating patients.
I was thinking about this all today as I laid around feeling lousy. The lousy stuff is happening more and more and the symptoms are mounting. Common sense tells me to use my Medicare and try to find better care providers. But there’s a principle involved here, no less the personal expense that goes with Medicare sponsored health maintenance. The United States owes me full medical care. We have a contract. Sadly, our government is a welcher and the people of the nation aren’t insisting that deals made in their name are honored.
